


Close Quarters

by scarletmanuka



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: Hurt Tony Stark, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Mutual Pining, Panic Attacks, Trapped
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-01
Updated: 2020-02-01
Packaged: 2021-02-28 02:27:39
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,584
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22506286
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/scarletmanuka/pseuds/scarletmanuka
Summary: During an attack by Doctor Doom, Tony and Bucky get trapped underneath a collapsed building.
Relationships: James "Bucky" Barnes/Tony Stark
Comments: 22
Kudos: 373





	Close Quarters

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Sassy_Boo_Bear](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sassy_Boo_Bear/gifts).



The first explosion had sent shrapnel flying at Tony and, because that was just the sort of day this was turning out to be, some of it managed to damage the housing for his nanites. The left side of his armour wasn’t deploying, along with half the right thigh plate and what was left was more of a hindrance than a help. It took several tries but he finally got the rest of the armour to collapse and the nanites returned to what was left of their housing. 

Now Tony was suitless and vulnerable as all around him the battle waged on. A Doombot zoomed past him and Tony dodged its fire and ducked down an alleyway, trying to find some sort of cover. Victor von Doom was becoming a bigger and bigger pain in the ass and they were going to have to deal with him - permanently, and soon. He reached up to tap the side of his glasses and activated the comms. “I’m out for the count,” he told the team. “Looks like you’ll have to defeat Doctor Drama Queen without me.”

 _“Copy that,”_ Steve said, and then there was a grunt and a metallic crash, before he then asked, _“Are you hurt?”_

“No, I’m still kicking. I’m just armourless and woefully aware that I am a soft, fleshy meat popsicle.”

 _“Is anyone free to head Tony’s way to watch his six?”_ Steve asked.

 _“I’m on it,”_ Bucky replied.

 _“Crap! Guys, I’ve got my eyes on Doom and he’s got hostages,”_ Clint told them.

 _“We’re on our way,”_ Sam said.

 _“I’m already here,”_ Nat informed them. _“He’s seen me.”_

 _“Keep him talking if you can,”_ Steve instructed. _“Wanda, Vision, you two get behind him, Sam and I will join you, Nat. Clint, let us know if something changes.”_

There were murmurs of assent but Tony tuned them out as a bot flew into the alleyway. He backed up as far as he could go, but the back exit was blocked with rubble from damage the buildings to either side had already taken from the battle. He crouched down behind a large piece of stone coloured facade but knew that the bot would soon see him. He pulled out two of the Widow Bites that he kept in his pocket, ready to try and disarm it but before it had gotten within five feet of him, a figure dropped down from above onto the bot, crashing both bot and human into the ground. Bucky had one of his larger knives in his hand and he expertly shoved the blade between two joins and into the innards of the bot. Sparks flew and there was a buzzing noise as the bot shuddered violently, but then it went dead and Bucky shoved it away. He got to his feet and held out a hand for Tony to take. “You good?” he asked.

Tony nodded, accepting the hand and allowing the soldier to pull him to his feet. “Yeah, thanks for the save.”

“Anytime.”

“We should -” Tony didn’t get to finish the statement. His eyes went wide as he saw three bots appear from nowhere, already dropping the large, explosive devices they carried. 

Bucky must have read the horror in his expression and acted without even thinking as Tony found himself turned and shoved against the wall, the warm weight of the super soldier at his back. Of all the ways he’d dreamed of having Bucky pressed against him, this hadn't been one of them. 

There was a large _boom_ and then everything went dark.

oOoOo

The sound of falling rubble stopped and in the pitch dark Bucky ever so carefully flexed the muscles in his back. Stones and dust rained down on top of him but nothing larger came down. He pushed upwards a little but the remains of the building above them didn’t budge. He automatically made some quick calculations in his head - you had to be good at math to be a sniper - then wished he hadn’t. He figured that they would be under at least several tonnes of debris at the very least. If it was just himself then he might have tried to muscle his way out but Tony was here with him and there was no way that he was going to endanger his team mate more than necessary since one false move could bring everything down on them. He managed to get a hand on his comm device but it was dead and silent in his ear, useless. The others had their last known coordinates and they would come to the rescue once they'd defeated Doom, of that he was certain. They just had to wait it out and he would have to try _not_ to think about just how much weight was pressing down on him.

“Tony?” Bucky rasped out, his throat dry with dust. “You still with me?”

He felt a minute movement from the warm body beneath him and then the distinct motion of Tony nodding. “Yeah, I’m here, Tastee Freeze. You’re a handy guy to have around, what with the whole saving my life thing twice in as many minutes.”

Bucky smiled. “I did say anytime - I meant it.” His back was beginning to ache from being hunched over and he tried to shift his feet but he was jammed in tight. “Do you have any wriggle room at all?” he asked.

Tony shifted a little and grunted and when he replied, his voice was a little pained. “Uh, that’s a negative.”

Bucky nodded, his chin brushing against Tony’s back. He breathed in, smelling spicy cologne, sweat, and the weird ozone smell of the nanites that Tony used for his suit. It was a scent that Bucky had become slightly addicted to over the past several months but this wasn’t exactly the circumstances that he’d hoped for to become more intimately acquainted with it. “No worries, thanks for trying.”

“Least I could do,” Tony replied.

“I’ll try to keep supporting myself but if I start leaning on you too much, just let me know. I wouldn't want to squish ya.”

Tony chuckled but it came out sounding more like a wheeze than a laugh. “Is this the part where you ask if your vibranium arm makes you look fat?”

Bucky sniffed. “I’ll have you know that she has curves in all the right places _,”_ he teased.

“Oh, it’s a very pretty arm, don’t get me wrong,” Tony assured him, the same teasing tone in his own voice. “But it wouldn’t hurt for her to forgo the odd doughnut or two.”

“I totally get now how you get laid so often - it’s that complimentary way you have of sweet talking the ladies.”

“Now now, Bucky Bear, no need to get your panties in a twist. I’m rather fond of voluptuous vibranium gals. I meant no offense.”

Bucky grinned in the dark. “You might need to buy her a drink to apologise.”

Tony froze and Bucky wondered if he’d gone too far for a second but then Tony was talking again. “You got yourself a deal, soldier, just so long as you wear something sleeveless to really show off her curves.”

Had he just gotten a date with Tony for when this was all over? Or was Tony just humouring him, taking the joke that one step too far? Before he could find a way to ask for clarification, Tony started coughing, his whole body spasming beneath Bucky. “Hey, you okay?” Bucky asked, managing to work a hand between them to rub at Tony’s shoulder. 

It took a moment for Tony to get his breath back and after one final, wet sounding cough, Bucky felt him nod again. “Yeah, sure am, just all this dust.”

“I’m sure the team will find us soon.”

“I hope so - another explosion above us could destabilise all of this stuff and have it crush us for good.”

It was Bucky’s turn to freeze. He’d been trying so hard to distract himself from those kinds of thoughts and the flirting and teasing had been doing a pretty good job of it. Now though...he was acutely aware of just how much debris was above them, of how one false move by rescue workers could have it pin them down, trapping them forever. He tried once again to move but couldn’t, the weight above him too much and his breathing became faster, shallower, more panicked.

“Bucky?” Tony asked. “Are you okay?”

“Uh huh,” he lied.

“Buck - why do I have the feeling that you’re lying?” Tony asked.

He was breathing rapidly but he still didn’t have enough oxygen to laugh. “Cos I am?” he managed.

There was a moment of silence and then Tony said, “Did you know that I have issues with really wide, open spaces?”

“Huh?”

“I guess it’s more vast, _empty_ spaces but with the light pollution in this city, the night sky always looks empty since you can’t see the stars.” 

Bucky wasn’t sure why Tony was telling him this but he didn’t interrupt, just tried to concentrate on Tony’s voice and getting his own breathing under control.

“It started after the Battle of New York. When I went through that wormhole there was just...nothing. Nothing at all except the Chitauri ship. There were no stars or moons or planets. It was just _empty_. I didn’t think that space could be empty but they had found somewhere that was. And there I was, nothing but my old suit between me and that nothingness and as I lost power and I began to fall, the wormhole began to close and I thought that I would spend the rest of my life falling through nothingness and that thought terrified me.” He managed to shrug, pressing the warmth of his body more closely against Bucky’s chest for a brief moment. “But I made it through the wormhole before it closed and the Hulk caught me and they say the rest is history but it’s not, ya know?”

Bucky nodded. He _did_ know and the reason behind the story was beginning to make sense.

Tony coughed again before he continued. “I still carry it with me, every single day and most of the time I can ignore it, and get on with my life but every now and then...well, the space around me feels a little too wide, a little too empty, and I end up having a damn panic attack. They’re _so_ much fun.” He coughed again, wet and not right. “I’m guessing you can relate.”

Bucky took one last deep shuddering breath and he tipped his head forward until his forehead was resting against Tony’s shoulder before he nodded. “It’s the cryo chamber,” he whispered into the dark. “Going on ice, having the door shut on me and knowing that I’m trapped until someone lets me out, that I’m locked away in that tiny coffin-like space.”

Tony gasped a little but his managed to twist his body until his hand could grasp Bucky’s. “I thought so, but you’re not alone here and we might be trapped but it’s temporary. The others _will_ come for us, I know they will. Trust me.”

“I do,” Bucky said softly, and his lips brushed the back of Tony’s neck. “I trust you with everything I have, Tony.”

Tony’s fingers squeezed Bucky’s hand even tighter. “Besides,” he said, “we _have_ to get out of here because you and I have a date and I don’t stand my dates up.”

Bucky smiled. “I thought you had a date with my arm?”

“Yes, well, since you’re attached to your arm and all I guess by default that means that I have a date with you too,” Tony said airily.

He laughed. “That’s good to know, sugar. I’m looking forward to it.”

“So am I,” Tony said, and then his whole body was shaking as he had yet another coughing fit. It went on and on and Bucky began to worry that Tony wouldn’t ever be able to get enough oxygen if it didn't stop. He had a horrible feeling that he knew what was causing the coughing but trapped as they were, there was absolutely nothing that he could do about it.

When the coughing finally stopped, Tony was exhausted and they didn't speak. Bucky tried to give him what comfort he could whilst keeping his own panic under control. He had no idea how much time passed in the dark, it could have been hours, it could have been minutes, and he simply prayed that the team would find them soon.

Tony’s breathing had become more and more laboured by the time they heard voices above them, calling for them through the rubble. Bucky cried out, giving them an auditory beacon to follow and then he leaned down and pressed a kiss to Tony’s hair. “They’ve found us, Tony, just like I said they would.”

There was no reply. 

Bucky tried to tune out the sounds from above so he could hear if Tony was breathing but the rescuers were too loud. He flattened his hand against Tony’s back but he wasn’t sure if he could feel the rise and fall of his chest or if it was the shifting bricks and mortar around them. “Tony?” Bucky tried again, becoming more and more frantic. “Tony, please, wake up!”

A moment later, bright light was blinding Bucky and he craned his head up to see Steve and Vision above him. He turned down to look at Tony and found him pale and lifeless beneath him “Steve!” he cried, pushing himself upright and hauling Tony up in his arms. There was a wet squelching noise and blood began to pour from Tony’s body as Bucky pulled him from the metal spike that he had been impaled on. “Shit, Steve, help!” Bucky almost screamed.

Steve pulled Tony from Bucky’s arms and he was passed out to the medics who were on standby and by the time Bucky was helped from the small space they’d been trapped in, Tony was nowhere in sight. 

The image of his lifeless body was seared into Bucky’s mind and he staggered sideways, fell to his knees, and retched. 

oOoOo

The first thing that Tony became aware of was a dull aching pain. The second was that someone was holding his hand. His fingers twitched and the fingers tangled in his twitched back. He peeled open his eyes and looked up into the beautiful wintery grey eyes of Bucky Barnes. “Hey,” he croaked. “We got out?”

“Just,” Bucky said, raising their joined hands so he could press a kiss to Tony’s knuckles. His voice was scratchy with emotion as he joked, “I thought you were trying to get out of our date.”

Tony smiled and squeezed Bucky’s fingers as tightly as he could manage. “I told you before, I’m not gonna stand you up. You’re kinda stuck with me now, it just might take me awhile to get out of here so I can wine you and dine you.”

“Well,” Bucky said, his smile lopsided, “luckily I’m not all that into wining and dining. I’m more of a movie and popcorn kinda guy.” He held up a DVD. “Which means we can start our date whenever you’re up for it.”

The exhaustion he was feeling faded slightly and Tony grinned. “Well then, soldier, how does right now sound to you?”

Bucky leaned forward and brushed his lips chastly against Tony’s. “Sounds pretty darn perfect.”

  
  
  



End file.
